


Koutos one shots

by BlueSpiderRhia



Category: Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic
Genre: M/M, One Shot Collection
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-01-21
Updated: 2021-02-05
Packaged: 2021-03-13 10:47:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death
Chapters: 6
Words: 11,726
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/28902111
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/BlueSpiderRhia/pseuds/BlueSpiderRhia
Summary: This is a series of drabbles for the pairing, KouenxSpartos. Yes, I'm aware that this is a strange yet rare pairing, but I personally love it.Magi: The Labyrinth of Magic and it's characters (C) Shinobu Ohtaka
Relationships: Spartos Leoxses/Ren Kouen





	1. Night Stroll

Kouen was sitting in his work space filling out paperwork, his siblings had turned in for the night except for Koumei, who would stay up half the night filling out his paperwork before sleeping for the rest of the night and most of the day. He suddenly stopped writing and sighed, he couldn’t focus ever since his eyes lied on one of Sinbad’s generals, Spartos Leoxses if he remembered correctly, well..something about him felt familiar, but that couldn’t be right as they just met earlier that day. Finally he stood up, deciding that he should take a stroll around the palace to help clear his mind so he did exactly that.  
He admired the silence that the night brought with it since everything was so loud and busy during the day especially that day since Sinbad was around. To say he was annoyed with his antics and women swooning over him and Sharrkan was an understatement.

Red eyes blinked. Women only swooned over them, but never Spartos, why was that? He hummed thoughtfully until recalling that a woman went up to him wanting to have ‘fun’ with him, but he got increasingly uncomfortable and backed away from the woman then Sharrkan stepped in. Ah. So he got nervous around women, that’s why none of them swooned him, they simply didn’t like guys who were shy. He found himself rolling his eyes, the knight could do much better without them anyway.  
Suddenly he heard a noise, which snapped him out of his thoughts as he reached for his sword, ready to draw it at a moment’s notice, however, upon seeing that it was just Spartos he somewhat sighed of relief, slowly moving his hand away from his sword. He made it a point to bore his red eyes practically into his soul as he didn’t trust him because he mainly suspected that Sinbad would send one of his two generals to snoop around at night, find information and report back to him. “Sir Spartos, what are you doing up at this hour?” He asked.

Spartos tensed from a pair of eyes boring into his soul along with the question that came from none other than Kouen Ren, first imperial prince of the Kou Empire. He slowly looked over at the taller male “I..couldn’t sleep.” It wasn’t the truth, but it wasn’t a lie either, he had a nightmare, but knew he and Kouen weren’t close enough to share such things so he didn’t want to bother him with it. “I’m sorry if I’m not allowed to roam the palace this late. I can..return to my room if you wish.” He added, not wanting to potentially upset him.  
Earlier that day the knight had spotted him gazing at him every now and then, but why? Did he do something wrong without realizing it? Oh Solomon, he hoped he didn’t. “I..noticed you were gazing at me every now and then. Did..I do something wrong without realizing it? If so then I apologize for whatever disrespectful act I pulled.”

“No, no. You just intrigue me is all. Would you like to accompany me?” Kouen found himself asking without realizing it. He then blinked as his mouth went agape, but it was too late to take back what he asked and he knew it. Honestly he wouldn’t blame the slightly shorter male if he rejected his offer and continued on his way, however, he was surprised when he heard,”Sure, I’ll accompany you.”, from him. He nodded and soon the duo walked through the halls together in a surprisingly comfortable silence.  
“Spartos, may I ask you something? Since you arrived here have you had that feeling like we’ve met before but weren't sure as we just met.” He tilted his head to the side a bit.

Spartos hummed thoughtfully at his question. “Now that you mention it. Yes, I have gotten the feeling that we’ve already met even though earlier today was the first time we met each other. I tried to ask Sinbad about it, but he changed the subject.” He answered. He proceeded to frown, knowing that the king was hiding something from them that neither knew, but what and why?  
Suddenly, he felt a hand placed on his shoulder and he looked up at the taller male, who said,”We’ll confront him in the morning about this. For now, let us enjoy our stroll.”, to which he agreed to doing.

The duo eventually made it to the palace gardens or one of many anyway, this particular garden had flowers in it and was the prime location of Kougyoku during the day as she would make flower crowns or anything flower themed in general. They sat on one of the many benches and looked up at the starry sky with the moon up high and proud.  
“...You were lying to me back there. You had a nightmare. I know the look of someone who had a nightmare as my brothers had that exact look a few times. Tell me, what’s bothering you Spartos?” Kouen explained while dropping formalities now as he knew no one else was around to hear.

The knight bit his lower lip softly, dark orbs gazing at the stoney path beneath his feet. “It’s..about my brother’s death. However, the nightmare is a rare occurrence so it’s not a big deal, promise. I know it’s not my fault, but..it feels like it sometimes.” He waited to be shunned for having such a ‘silly’ nightmare, but instead he received a comforting pat on the head.  
“I would feel the same way if I lost my brothers, in fact..a few times I had rare nightmares about Hakuren and Hakuyuu dying in that damned fire, wishing I could do more but couldn’t.” The first imperial prince clenched his free hand.

At this, Spartos wasn’t sure how to respond. In fact he wasn’t sure how to comfort Kouen in return so he just awkwardly rubbed his back in a soothing manner. “It’s..all in the past. There is nothing we can do about it now but live on for them and remember the happy memories we shared with them.”  
Kouen listened to his words and nodded. Those..were actually wise words coming from the knight’s mouth. For once he couldn’t help but smile and chuckle softly. “You’re right, Spartos.” He replied.

That being said the two fell back into a comfortable silence, they continued to look up at moon and stars until Spartos started to dowse off, leaning against Kouen and falling asleep. The first imperial prince paused, unsure of how to react, but the logical thing to do is to bring him back to his bedroom as sleeping against him sitting on a bench didn’t sound exactly comfortable. He swept him up in his arms before getting up and heading to Spartos’ room, where he placed him on his bed, tucked him up and left his room to head back to his work space to continue his paperwork. 

The next day rolled around and as promised after breakfast the two confronted Sinbad. Spartos had his arms crossed while Kouen bore his eyes into the king’s soul, but he didn’t seem phased in the slightest. “Tell us Sinbad, why do we feel an air of familiarity when we’re around each other? Don’t try to change the subject either.” The first imperial prince asked while warning him.  
Sinbad hummed before sighing in defeat. “You two have met in the past. However, I manipulated Spartos’s rukh so he would forget the Kou Empire entirely for the safety of Sindria since I found out you two were sending letters back and forth and I wasn’t sure if he was spilling sensitive information.” He explained.

At this, Kouen’s eyes sharpened as he tried not to pull his sword out and take a swipe at the king, but he kept his composure as he suddenly remembered why they were sending letters to each other. “He was teaching me Torrian language, nothing more.” He bluntly replied. His gaze then went to Spartos to see how he felt about this and he saw a mixture of sadness, anger and betrayal. He went over to him, wrapping his arm around him hesitantly in a comforting matter. The first imperial prince was surprised to say the least when he didn’t try to break away.

“Come Sir Spartos, let us go to your safe spot.” By that he meant the flower garden as he remembered him mentioning that the garden was a safe haven to him. He gave one last look at Sinbad, which said; ‘Sit there and think about what you’ve done’.  
He then led the knight to the flower garden and sat him down on the bench before sitting next to him. Funnily enough they were sitting in the same spot as last night. “Will you be okay, Spartos?” He asked.

Spartos slowly shook his head. “No..because knowing he’ll probably do it again after we leave and I won’t realize it is..a scary thought.” He answered. He really didn’t want to forget his first time in the Kou Empire again, he had so many fond memories. Sure, Kouha and Judar picked on him by butchering his name several times and Kouen bossed him around, but that’s when he stuck up for himself for the very first time though he did cry when they got into the same exact flower garden. 

“You won’t forget this time. Remember that flower crown you made me earlier yesterday?” Kouen took it out of his robes and placed it onto his head. “I want you to have it. These flowers you chose grow exclusively in the Kou Palace’s flower garden so you shouldn’t forget where they came from.” He explained.  
The knight listened and couldn’t help but tear up. “Kouen I..thank you.” He thanked, he would hug him if he could but knew that the first imperial prince didn’t particularly like being touched. However, it seemed as if he read his mind because he said,”You’re welcome. Also you may give me a hug, but I’m allowing just this once.”, but he hugged him anyway, smiling softly.


	2. Expedition date

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Spartos and Kouen finally go on a expedition, which soon turns into a accidental date in a way.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one shot takes place in a Pokemon Mystery Dungeon AU. If you don't know what PMD is it's basically a spin-off game to the main series, Pokemon, where you're a Pokemon and you get to go on adventures in these dungeons called mystery dungeons with your chosen partner Pokemon.

Spartos, a Corvisquire, was sitting in Sinbad’s guild with Pisti, a Sylveon, who was telling him about her recent expediton in a mystery dungeon with Yamuraiha and how they had found all sorts of cool things. He himself always considered going on an expedition, but he wanted to go with someone special from the rival guild, where Kouen, a Luxray, was the guildmaster and was always busy so he had no time to go. A sigh escaped as he stretched his wings. “That’s quite amazing to hear, Pisti. What did you guys do with all that treasure?” He hoped she didn’t take it, after all it could’ve been someone’s personal treasure.

“We left it be. After all we didn’t know who it could’ve belonged to and we didn’t want to become outlaws because of it.” She answered. She knew her friend was iffy about taking treasure from mystery dungeons as it could’ve potentially belonged to someone, but she didn’t blame him.  
“So..when is Kouen going to ask you out on an expedition date already?” She furrowed her eyes and giggled upon seeing the flustered look on his face. She knew those two liked each other and had kept their secret meetings well..a secret because she didn’t want him to get in trouble with Sinbad along with knowing that no one could stop him from loving who he loved. 

“First off, expeditions aren’t dates and should be taken seriously. Secondly, I..don’t know, he’s..always busy.” He answered. His gaze then went to the floor, maybe he should try to ask him again today? Yeah, he should. He took a deep breath and turned to leave the guild before flying off to Kouen’s guild, landing at the entrance once he got there.  
He then went inside and climbed down the ladder only to see the guild was empty. ‘Huh. They all must be out on expeditions.’ He thought before entering Kouen’s office and finding the electric-type pokemon asleep. At this, he became concerned, was he not getting enough sleep?

Kouen then began to stir before yawning and stretching, only to see the Corvisquire in front of him. “Spartos? What are you doing here? It’s broad daylight out. You could be caught.” He pointed out.  
“About that. Most of your siblings are out on expeditions since the guild is practically empty. Now..um..” Spartos shifted nervously. “Would you like to go on an expedition with me? I always considered going on one, but..I wanted to do it with you.”  
The Luxray’s mouth went agape upon hearing this before he shook his head. “I suppose I have been putting it off long enough. Very well, let us get prepared.”

At this, Spartos became excited, but he kept it hidden as he didn’t want to seem like a Rookidee. “Very well. Let’s go then.” He replied.  
The duo left the guild to go pick up supplies for their expedition, which consisted of apples, oran berries, heal seeds, reviver seeds, max elixirs and more. Afterwards they headed to a mystery dungeon and went inside it.  
“So..what is this place?” The Corvisquire asked. The mystery dungeon they were in had plenty of hedges, trees and bushes all filled to the brim with various types of berries and apples with a few seed types scattered here and there.

“Mmn.” Kouen gave a dumbfounded look as he couldn’t remember the place they were in. All he could remember is that it used to be a garden until the mysterious magic of mystery dungeons took it over. “I..don’t remember. Sorry Spartos.” He apologized.  
He knew his brother Koumei might have some insight on the mystery dungeon since he had the unfortunate end of always being dragged off to another expedition with his youngest brother, Kouha. An amused chuckle escaped as he mentally noted to tell the Espeon to give the poor Luxio a break and let him have a nap.

“It’s okay Kouen, you don’t have to be sorry. Not knowing what this place is called adds more to the excitement in our expedition.” Spartos reassured. “You know Pisti asked me if I asked you on a expedition date and I told her that expeditions shouldn’t be treated as such.” He chuckled.  
He knew Pisti must’ve been joking around since that’s what she usually does when they hangout, but a part of him was telling him she was being serious as well. His gaze went to the grass below his talons, he and Kouen were strong pokemon so he doubted they would have trouble with rogue pokemon they came across.

“Your best friend is..oddly amusing isn’t she?” Kouen tilted his head to the side. Spartos had talked about the Sylveon way more times than he could count, he secretly found it adorable that those two shared a sibling-like relationship. His ears then flicked and he held his paw up to stop the other in his tracks as he now just noticed how eerily quiet it was in the mystery dungeon and usually rogue pokemon would try to track them down.  
“Spartos, did you ever notice how eerily quiet it is? This isn’t normal.” He pointed out while keeping his guard up now.

Suddenly, a whole bunch of pokemon dropped from the sky or came out of the hedges, trees or bushes. It was at this moment the duo realized they had come across one of many monster houses.  
“I knew it! A monster house!” As much as Kouen was eager for a fight, he knew Spartos knew that they should try to get away from all the rogue pokemon before they ended up needing to be rescued. Without warning, he grabbed him by the neck and ran away with the rogue pokemon chasing after them, but after a while he managed to retreat into a cave and let go. “Did I hurt you?” He asked immediately, knowing that he wasn’t exactly the most gentle pokemon in the world.

“Well..other than a few of my feathers falling out. I’m fine.” Spartos reassured while feeling the bold spot on the back of his neck with his wing and pouting. Arceus, he was going to be teased endlessly by Pisti for it and he knew it thus he let out a sigh. He gazed at Kouen as if to ask if he brought anything that could cover it up until it grew back, only to get a head shake in return. At this, he gazed down at his talons again before shaking his head, he couldn’t let something like that get him down so his eyes shifted from sadness to determination.

Kouen watched his movements carefully and he was relieved to see he wasn’t upset. At that point he figured they should leave the mystery dungeon so he looked around for a potential exit before spotting an opening-, or an exit leading into an opening. He rested his tail tip gently on Spartos’s head and gestured it towards the exit, which he nodded in turn and the duo went towards it and into the opening, where they saw the sun begin to set. Well this was an unexpected turn of events but a welcome one in the Luxray’s eyes since they both liked sunrises and sunsets.

“Wow..this is so pretty. I don’t know if you planned this or if we just got out of there just in time to see this, but either way I love it.” Spartos’s eyes had a sparkle to them as he nestled down with Kouen lying next to him reluctantly.  
The Corvisquire’s eyes trailed over to a nearby sign and he squinted to see what it said. “Se..rene..Gar..den. Serene Garden! That’s where we are.” He said, glancing at the Luxray to see if he remembered the mystery dungeon now.

Kouen blinked a few times. “Oh right. No rogue pokemon exists in this mysterious dungeon. Well they do in a sense as I now remember this place is infamous for monster houses, but other than that no one has ever seen a lone rogue pokemon in this mystery dungeon.” He fondly remembered that he and his brothers would often come to train.  
He squinted, seeing a trail just ahead of them, which he stood up and went to check it, where he discovered it led back to town. Good, that made things easier for them when they were ready to leave. He went back over to Spartos and lied down next to him once more.

They stayed there until the sun went down completely then they went back to Kouen’s guild, but the Luxray told Spartos to stay put, which confused him but he agreed nonetheless. A few minutes later he returned with a scarf and handed it to him.  
“Don’t worry about returning it. It’s yours to keep. Have a good evening, Spartos.” He gave him a soft smile that was only reserved for him before he headed back into the guild.

Spartos couldn’t help but chuckle. Kouen may be intimidating, but deep down there was a softy though no one dared call him that for obvious reasons. He wrapped the scarf around his neck, making sure to tie it firmly before he made his way back to Sinbad’s guild and made sure to sneak into his shared crew’s room with Pisti before falling asleep for the night. Perhaps she was right after all, their expedition turned into a date thus making it an expedition date.


	3. Confessions

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Takes place in a modern fantasy AU.
> 
> Spartos and Pisti summon the phoenix's spirit and it chooses Kouen, who confronts Spartos about the sudden change and the two end up confessing in their own ways.

Day of the phoenix’s rebirth.  
Something Spartos didn’t think he’d ever get to witness or even participate in for that matter. Day of the phoenix’s rebirth meant that the phoenix’s spirit would go into a person’s body to give them fire and healing powers. He himself was just the summoner along with his best friend, Pisti.  
He took a deep breath before gazing at his best friend as if to ask if she was ready, she was. The two began to play their respective instruments, a flute and harp as he began to sing;

“O’ great phoenix who has died, come forth.  
O’ great phoenix come to life, choose your new body.  
O’ great phoenix find your way, let your flame last eternal.

O’ great phoenix have a safe journey, take care.  
O’ great phoenix let us meet again, the cycle shall continue.  
O’ great phoenix the summoning has been complete.”  


When he finished singing a fire spirit-like bird showed itself in the lit bonfire, gazing at Spartos for a split second before flying off to seek a new body to inhabit. He watched and wondered what that was about, after all he had heard tales of the phoenix’s rebirth ceremony but heard that the fire spirit didn’t eye anyone when it left. Did he do something to upset it? Hopefully not, he didn’t recall doing anything to upset it.

“Spartos.” He hummed and looked at Pisti, who gestured that it was time for them to head back to their respective homes. He nodded and stood up.  
“Your singing was wonderful, Spar, you should do it more often.” She suggested.  
He rubbed the back of his head in response to this. “Don’t be so modest. I..prefer not to sing in front of a crowd.” He replied.

She pouted and clicked her tongue. “Still, who do you think the phoenix is going to choose as it’s new host? Also why did it eye you? You didn’t do anything wrong or sung the song wrong.” She tilted her head to the side a bit.  
“We don’t really know who the phoenix ever chooses and..I don’t know. That’s..what worries me.” He admitted while collapsing his hands together.  
“Ah well. So..when are you going to ask Kouen out?” She gave him a smug look and elbowed him.

“I-, huh!? N..No Pisti, we..aren’t like that. We’re just friends. Besides, he doesn’t seem like the type of guy to go on dates.” He sighed. He did love the man, don't get him wrong, but he doubted he felt the same and if he did it was hard to tell.  
Their first meeting was..strange to say the least. Despite his human appearance he was a giant beast or technically wolf while Pisti herself was a cokatrice, but in her human form her powers to kill people were thankfully null and void otherwise he would be very dead. Anyway, he was taking a walk in the woods when he spotted a human man on the trail, who spotted him fairly easily for obvious reasons. He was half expecting him to freak out and run away but he stayed, his eyes boring into him thus causing him to be afraid and back off deeper into the woods.

He shook his head and realized they had arrived at the small woman’s house. “Have a nice evening, Pisti.” He gave her a soft smile before leaving to go back to his own home, however, once he arrived something crash landed into him and he tensed in pain since he felt a burning sensation. His dark orbs gazed over and saw the phoenix, but not as a spirit but rather in its physical form, he noted it looked a little freaked out, but why?  
“Spartos!” His eyes widened as he recognized that deep voice, it belonged to Kouen. “Kouen!?” His mouth went agape before shaking his. ‘So..the phoenix has chosen him? How..oddly fitting.’ He thought.

“Why am I like this? Something flew towards me and I was unconscious for a good while until I awoke and saw that I was a phoenix.” Kouen explained.  
Spartos gently pushed him off. “Ever heard of day of the phoenix’s rebirth? Well..me and Pisti took part in it this time and the phoenix chose you. You now have fire and healing powers along with the ability to transform into the phoenix. Ah. I suppose you do want to change back, just focus and turn back to normal.” He explained.  
He blankly stared in response before nodding and did as told, a firey glow surrounded him and he was back to normal. Of course, he noticed the burn wound on the slightly shorter male’s side. ‘Healing powers, huh?’ He thought as he pressed his hand against the burn mark and felt him tense in response. His hand began to glow and the burn mark at least healed up so it wouldn’t hurt anymore. “Feel better?” He asked.

Spartos nodded as he finally stood up. “Thanks.” He thanked, smiling softly at the taller male. He then stayed quiet for a bit and thought about Pisti’s words, but he shook his head again.  
“I guess you’ll be on your way now?” He tilted his head to the side a bit. In truth, he didn’t want him to leave so soon, but he wasn’t one to stop someone from doing something unless it was bad.

“No. I actually wanted to give you something. You see I was going to give it to you tomorrow, but since I’m here now..” Kouen reached into his pocket, pulling out a letter. He then stuffed his hands in his pockets and awaited for him to open the letter up.  
Spartos looked at the letter then back at him before nodding, opening up the letter and pulling out a folded piece of paper before unfolding it to see what it said, which it said;

‘To dearest little erm..giant pup,

Our first meeting hasn’t exactly gone well as I just glared at you and you backed up before running deeper in the woods. However, despite that, you still approached me in your human form and wanted to become my acquaintance since you doubted we would be friends. That didn’t turn out to be the case thankfully and we became good friends, however, I admit that something sparked inside of me. At the time I didn’t know what it was, but now I do and what I’m trying to say is I love you, but it’s quite difficult to say out loud so brother Mei suggested I write my feelings out instead and give you the letter.

-Kouen. R’

Spartos snorted at the nickname given as he finished the letter, however, his cheeks were noticeably powdered light pink from blushing. Dark orbs gazed into red ones and both pairs of eyes had a serious look to them.  
“I understand that confessing is hard, but I humbly accept your confession. In truth, I uh..” He shifted nervously, looking down. “Love you too, but I wasn’t sure how to admit it.” He admitted. He then received an affectionate pat on the head and he looked up again.

“This doesn’t surprise me one bit.” Kouen stopped patting his head and set his hand back on his side. He gave a small smile “Anyway, I must be on my way now. My brothers will no doubt be worried about where I went.” He focused and turned back into his phoenix form. “This should make things much easier now so I suppose I should be thanking you for summoning the phoenix’s spirit along with thanking the phoenix for choosing me so..thank you.” He then flew off.  
Dark orbs watched in awe, he thought he looked stunning flying into the night sky. He then shook his head and realized he had forgot to ask him if he wanted to go on a date thus he facepalmed. Oh boy, well there was always tomorrow, right? Still he had a feeling that Pisti would chew him out for not even asking, which caused him to pout because he knew he wasn’t going to hear the end of it.  
A defeated sigh escaped his lips as he headed back inside before heading into his bedroom to turn in for the night, however, it just occurred to him that he had a phone he could use.

He quickly went to grab said phone before sitting down at the edge of the bed, thought about what he wanted to text very carefully and did so. The redhead basically told him that he forgot to ask him if he wanted to go on a date and if he wanted to go on said date. He doubted he would get a response at the moment, but he wouldn’t mind waiting not to mention he completely disregarded dinner as well. Ah. His mind was simply all over the place, which sadly wasn’t unusual for him.

With phone in hand he went into the kitchen, placing it on the table before getting out some leftover vegetarian casseroles from the fridge to heat back in the microwave to eat. Afterwards, he sat down at the table to eat it, which he admitted it tasted much better when it was fresh out of the oven.  
He then heard the ‘ping’ on his phone, looking over at it before setting the spoon down and picking it up before feeling his heart race as Kouen texted back,’Sure. Tomorrow night at moon high is when we shall meet.’, and he smiled. ‘That is..quite demanding of him. Ah well, moon high is just fine anyway.’ He thought to himself, setting his phone down and continuing to eat.

After he ate he did his usual nightly routine before turning in for the night, but he did have a bit of trouble going to sleep as he was too excited.  
When the next day rolled around he woke up, did his daily morning routine and went to Pisti’s house, where he told her the news, and she was happy for him while also deciding to help him get ready for the night.


	4. Truth and regret

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Takes place in a Mafia AU.
> 
> Spartos has been spying on the Kou mafia for a while and finally decides to tell Kouen the truth out of sheer guilt.

Spartos headed towards Kouen’s office nervously, reason being that he wanted to tell him the truth; he had been spying on the Kou mafia under Sinbad’s orders. Would he be killed? Probably so, but at least he could go out knowing that he told the truth in the end.  
He knocked on the office door and was met with a firm,”Enter.”, and he did exactly that. “Kouen, I..have something to tell you that you aren’t going to like.” He collapsed his hands together.

Kouen gazed up from the paperwork he was doing and furrowed his eyes. “Did a mission go horribly wrong with one of my members and they’re using you as a scapegoat?” He asked. It wouldn’t be the first time that he came into his office to tell him news that he wouldn’t like to hear, however, he was livid to find out that his own members would use the redhead as a scapegoat. He leaned back in his seat, ready to hear the news while awaiting to go scold another member for trying to escape punishment.

“I..so you remember when I told you mafia Sindria kicked me out because of betrayal? Well..” Spartos bit his lower lip softly as his dark orbs showed nervousness. “I lied about that. Sinbad sent me here as a spy, b..but he didn’t count on the fact that I’d end up falling in love with you. I..If it makes anything better I didn’t tell him any information even though I learned so much I..just couldn’t bring myself to do so.” He explained while tears threatened to spill. His body was shaking rapidly to the point he felt like he was going to be sick. Still, he braced himself for a bullet to go through his skull or chest.

As expected Kouen was livid upon hearing this information. How could he lie to him? He reached to grab his gun but stopped upon touching it before pulling his hand away seeing as he couldn’t bring himself to kill him. He stood up and swiftly left his office before he did something he would regret.

Spartos watched him leave the office, but he couldn’t bring himself to move as tears spilled onto the carpeted floor. He slowly moved a hand away to wipe away the tears. Upon hearing,”You better watch your back, Spartos.”, from Sinbad and his breath hitched. Had he been listening in this entire time.   
Oh great. So he hadn’t made one but two mafia bosses mad at him in a single day. His mind and body was screaming at him to run so he did.

Eventually he arrived at the docks and sat down. What could he do? No one has ever ran and hid from the mafia successfully. He was expecting to be found by next week ‘mysterious’ dead, which he found quite ironic since he brother died under ‘mysterious’ circumstances, but now he understood he must have got mixed up with the mafia and ended up dead because of it.  
“Spartos.” He tensed up this snapping out of his thoughts and looking up at Pisti to see her holding a gun up. Again, his breath hitched. “P..Pisti, you don’t have to do this just..let someone else do it.” He said.

“That’s the problem.” Pisti approached him before pointing the gun at his head before lowering her voice “If I let someone else do it they’ll kill you. I want to help you by faking your death.” She explained.  
His mouth went agape upon hearing this but he nodded. The redhead knew she wouldn’t have the heart to kill him since they were best friends. He too lowered his voice “How..do you plan on doing that exactly?” He asked.

She smiled a bit. “You’ll see.” She responded in a sing-song tone before gesturing him to follow so he did until they made it to a mannequin doll that looked exactly like Spartos, which he admitted freaked him out a little as it looked quite life like.  
“Do you get the idea now?” She asked, he nodded. “Good.” She held out a letter to him, winking at him.

Spartos bowed in thanks and hugged her before walking away to read the letter, which turned out to be an address to what he assumed would be his new home. He mentally sighed of relief, knowing that from now on he was going to be at ease without the looming threat of the mafia dangling over him. Still, he found it quite funny that he found it safer in the Kou mafia than he did in mafia Sindria, but that begged the question; would Kouen forgive him? He suddenly went pale, doubting that he would fall for his ‘death’ as he was a smart man so all he could do was hope he wouldn’t find him.

The next week rolled around and Kouen saw the news on Spartos’s ‘mysterious’ death. He was devastated to say the least although he didn’t show it and try as he might to deny that his little birdie was dead he was forced to accept it. At the same time he knew exactly who to be livid at, Sinbad.  
“Brother En.” He snapped out of it and looked up to see his brother, Koumei. “Yes brother Mei?” He furrowed his eyes, his tone gave out that he was annoyed though he didn’t mean to be.

Koumei held out the letter. “A tiny girl passed by our gates and slipped this through. I tried to call out to her but she just kept going.” He answered.  
Kouen gazed between him and the letter before reluctantly taking it. He opened it and it read;

‘To Kouen,

I suppose you heard about the news of Spartos’s death, correct? If yes then I would like to inform you that he is very much alive. Whenever we run out of things to talk about the conversation just ends up on you. He truly misses you, but he’s scared to see you again since he seems to be afraid that you’ll kill him or something. Look, I’ll give you his address, but you better play nice with him because if I find him actually dead I’ll hunt you down.

-Pisti’

Kouen read the address at the bottom of the letter and tucked it into his suit. “Thank you, brother Mei. You’re temporarily in charge until I get back.” He walked out of his office, notably in a better mood than he was before.  
When he got outside he went to his car, turned in on, drove it out of the garage and off the Kou mafia’s property before heading to Spartos’s location. He silently hoped that the letter was true and it wasn’t just Sinbad sending one of his most trust members to tease him.

Once he arrived at Spartos’s house he wasn’t surprised one bit to see that his house was just well..simple. After all, he learned that the redhead enjoyed simple things, which he never understood why but he respected his interest nonetheless.  
He got out of his car, approaching the house before trying to open the front door, locked. Red eyes rolled, he wasn’t surprised one bit that he had locked his doors before leaving the house, really any person with common sense would, but he had his ways of getting in. He went back to the car and dug through various lockpicks before finding one for houses then went back to the door, picked the lock and opened the door when he heard a ‘click’ to signify that he opened it.

Kouen looked around, the house was warm and comfortable with a welcoming aura to it, which didn’t surprise him one bit. He sat down on the couch, crossing his leg. Now all he needed to do was wait for his little birdie to come home though he knew he’d likely have to comfort him first as he’d likely get an anxiety attack upon seeing him. Yeah, maybe it wasn’t a good idea to drop by unannounced, but what else could he do? He missed him terribly that he couldn’t write him a letter to let him know that he was coming.

Eventually Spartos arrived back home and went to the back of the house, but not without checking out his mail first, which unsurprisingly most letters were from Pisti. When he went inside the house he filled a tea kettle with water, placed it on the stove and turned it on before going to the living room to relax a bit before seeing Kouen sitting on the couch. He froze in place as his body began to rapidly shake to the point of feeling sick just like it did after he told him the truth. This was it..he was very dead and there was no way out of it.

Kouen looked at him with his red eyes scanning over him. He couldn’t believe it, his little birdie was alive and well right in front of him. Quickly he shook his head, right, he had to calm him down so he stood up, bringing him into a gentle embrace, rubbing his back in a soothing manner and kissing the top of his head.  
“Shhh. It’s okay, Spartos. I’m not here to hurt you.” He reassured him. “You..have no idea how badly I missed you. I thought..you were actually dead.” He added. “I know I shouldn’t have reacted the way I did. It’ll take us both a while to gain each other’s trust back, but I’m sorry.”

Spartos listened to what he had to say while slowly calming down and nodding. “I’m..sorry as well and I forgive you.” He gazed up at him and gave him a soft smile before being sat down on the couch. “So..how did you find me anyway? The only person who knows I live here is Pisti.” He tilted his head to the side.  
“Pisti via letter. My brother, Koumei, found it on our property and gave it to me. At first I thought Sinbad had sent one of his most trusted members to mock me for your death.” Kouen explained.

“Sinbad is the very reason why I’m here to begin with. It turned out he had planted some listening device on me and overheard my confession. The last thing he told me was,’I better watch my back’, which caused me to freak out and run away. You were angry at the time too and I knew you weren’t willing to protect me after I told the truth.” Spartos collapsed his hands together, looking down at the floor.

Upon hearing this Kouen frowned, sure he was livid, but he didn’t want to cause Spartos any more stress than he possibly had so he kept his composure and brought him close to him once more. “I will now, but I’m not forcing you to come back because it’s too risky for you anyway. You’re safe here.” He patted his head affectionately.  
He clicked his tongue and knew one thing; he owed Sinbad a ‘favor’ for chasing his little birdie out of town by subtly threatening death upon him. “I must be going, Spartos, but rest assured I’ll be carefully sending you letters and anything you need.” He stood up and left his house.

Spartos watched him leave, wondering how he managed to unlock the front door while making a mental note to tell him to go through the back next time. He then heard the tea kettle start to wheeze and got up hurriedly before heading into the kitchen to turn off the stove. The redhead proceeded to get a cup, filling it with hot water before grabbing a mint tea bag and putting it in. He then went back into the living room and sat down on the lounge chair, happy to know that he can still relax.


	5. Jealousy and break up

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A woman named Janus who claims to be royalty comes to the Kou Empire, but her intents aren't what they seem. With her trickery Spartos and Kouen end up breaking up.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Warning; This chapter contains the topic of cheating. If this makes anyone uncomfortable I highly recommend not reading this chapter.

Spartos was at the docks of the Kou Empire. Kouen figured that since he was a ship guard back at Sindria then it would be perfect for him to do so he wasn’t in his guest room all day or following him around like a little duckling. The knight chuckled at the thought, it wasn’t his fault really, he just loved to spend time with the first imperial prince whenever he got the chance since he seemed to be always busy with one thing or another.  
He soon snapped out of his thoughts when a ship arrived and a woman with pastel purple hair, dark green eyes and fair skin stepped off the boat. She wore purple royal robes with loose golden bracelets on either side of her arms along with a staff that she carried in her hand. He couldn’t quite put his finger on it but something about her seemed fishy, however, he wasn’t one to be rude so he bowed.

“Greetings ma’am, welcome to the Kou Empire. What brings you here? A visit or business perhaps?” He asked since this is exactly what Kouen told him to say to anyone who stepped off a ship except the whole calling them ma’am bit, that would be insulting to a few after all.  
She gazed at him for a minute before looking towards the palace. “That I am, a visit. I’m Princess Janus Thalaj, but you can simply call me Janus. Could you kindly guide me to the palace o’ handsome knight.” She winked at him.  
The redhead became nervous upon her winking at him. “Ma-, Lady Janus. I’m not..well..nevermind! I’ll happily escort you to the castle.” He laughed nervously and started to escort her to the palace.

Janus followed him and frowned. ‘It seems he wasn’t affected by my spell. Oh well, I’m not here for him anyway. I’m here for the first imperial prince.’ She thought with an evil grin appearing on her face.

Eventually the duo arrived at the palace and Spartos escorted her inside before leading her to Kouen. “Lord Kouen, someone is here to visit the Kou Empire. She is a princess so..I think it’s best if you let her stay in the palace.” He explained, using formalities with him since he and the first imperial prince preferred to keep things on the downlow when someone visited.  
Kouen looked up, furrowing his eyes, Janus winked at him and suddenly his eyes widened. He then cleared his throat. “Understood. Could you leave us alone Sir Spartos? I wish to speak with her alone.”

This immediately raised a red flag for the redhead. The first imperial prince never sent him out of the room as he claimed he needed ‘protection’, but really he just wanted him to stay with him. “A..Are you sure, Lord Kouen? You..never asked me to leave before.” He pointed out.  
In response red eyes stared blankly into dark orbs. “Did I stutter?” The first imperial prince asked, collapsing his hands together while his expression shifted into an annoyed one.  
“I..no. Sorry Lord Kouen, I’ll go.” The knight proceeded to leave the room. Did he do something wrong with realizing it? He hoped not but he decided he’ll ask him later just in case, but little did he know that he’ll never have the chance to ask to begin with.

Over the next few weeks Kouen and Janus have been hanging out a lot much to Spartos’s dismay. Everytime he tried to speak with him he would be brushed off as if he didn’t exist yet he would speak with his brothers, Koumei and Kouha. He began to feel a mixture of sadness and jealousy. Was he..just not good enough for the first imperial prince anymore? The princess always made him laugh, smile and calm down when he was angered due to him ‘annoying’ him. He sighed and decided to go ask him if they should just break up though it would be with a heavy heart as he truly didn’t want that to be the case.

When he arrived at the library he couldn’t believe his eyes as his heart shattered right then and there; Kouen and Janus were kissing each other. New emotions flowed through him on top of the sadness he already felt, anger and betrayal.  
“Ren Kouen..” He called out coldly with his arms crossed. “Just what the hell are you doing with this wench?” He wasn’t one to swear or call someone a ‘wench’, but he was too angry at the moment to care.

“Kissing me of course. Why are you so upset about it? It isn’t like you two are together or anything based on the formalities around each other.” Janus frowned, but on the inside she was enjoying the scene. This is what she wanted to happen as she had a feeling the two were together. “Also calling me a wench just because he’s in love with me is quite rude.” She added, trying to add fuel to the fire.  
The first imperial prince placed a hand on her shoulder before glaring at Spartos. “I think it’s time you leave, Sir Spartos. You’re nothing to me but an annoying little cowardly knight.” He coldly said.

At this, the knight’s heart shattered beyond repair. “Y..Yes, I agree. It is time I take my leave. Goodbye, Lord Kouen.” He left the library and to the guest bedroom, he plopped onto the bed, hugged the pillow and cried until he couldn’t anymore. With his remaining energy he wrote a letter to Pisti asking if she could ask Sinbad to send a ship to the Kou Empire so he could return before attaching it to the messenger pigeon Koumei graciously gave him. After that, he went back to the bed, tossed the soaked pillow aside, bringing the dry one close to lie his head on before curling up and falling asleep.

A few days passed and Spartos was waiting at the docks for the ship from Sindria. Koumei had tried to talk him out of leaving a few times to try and fix things with Kouen, which he did listen to at first until the first imperial prince ignored his brother the moment that his name was brought up so he hadn’t bothered since. The ship arrived, his dark orbs gazed over at the palace one last time before he shook his head and got on the ship. After a few minutes of waiting to see if anyone else would board the boat the ship eventually was taken out of the docks and was on it’s way back to Sindria.  
Janus was a few feet away as she watched the knight leave. She laughed mischievously and snapped her fingers to snap Kouen out of his trance before exploding into a bunch of doves. ‘Well it’s been fun, but I have other couples to break up.’ She thought.

Meanwhile, said prince was doing paperwork when he suddenly blinked a few times and had a headache shortly afterwards. “My head..” He grumbled “Little birdie, could you please go to the medical wing and ask for some medicine and water for this damned headache, thanks.” He looked up, only to find Spartos wasn’t there. He furrowed his eyes, just where was his little birdie? He was usually with him albeit he was usually quiet as he did paperwork so he didn’t disturb him and to occupy himself he would be working on a small little gift for him.  
‘Maybe I can ask brother Mei, something in the atmosphere feels off.’ He stood up and left his work space to go to his second oldest brother, where he was unsurprisingly sleeping on his own paperwork.

He shook Koumei gently and he grumbled softly. “Five more minutes..” He said, the older of the two rolled his eyes before grabbing a scroll, rolling it up and smacking his brother slightly roughly but gently upside his head thus causing him to actually awaken. “Oh..brother En, what are you..” He yawned, “Doing here?” He asked.  
“Spartos, where is he?” The first prince asked, trying not to sound worried but failing miserably.  
The second prince frowned upon hearing his question. “So now you care about him? Make up your mind brother En; do you love him or Janus?”

Kouen stared blankly. “Spartos of course. What do you mean by ‘now I care about him’? Also who the hell is Janus? Mei, explain now..” He crossed his arms, looking angry since Koumei seemed to be accusing him of cheating on the knight.  
The second prince blinked a few times. Did he not remember anything? “Okay, okay, I’ll tell you, but first what is the last thing you remember?”  
“My little birdie coming in with someone, I think he said she was a princess but after that everything is a blank slate up until this point. Why?” He furrowed his eyes.

‘Just as I suspected; he doesn’t remember anything since he was under a spell or enchantment.’ Koumei thought to himself. He took a deep breath “Sit down, brother En, it’s gonna be a long explanation.” He responded.  
The first imperial prince did exactly that though he grew more impatient by the minute.  
“Okay, you were hanging out with Lady Janus a lot. She made you laugh, smile and even managed to calm you down when you were angered. However, you were completely ignoring Spartos as if he didn’t exist and to make matters worse he caught you kissing her and you called him an ‘annoying little cowardly knight’ thus breaking his heart into even more pieces than when he caught you two red handed.” The second imperial prince explained.

Kouen became angered right then and there, not only at the person who started this whole mess but at himself for saying such a thing to Spartos. He didn’t think he was annoying nor cowardly at all, in fact, he found him adorable, brave and very attractive when he was training. “Mei..seriously, where is..Spartos?” He asked, but he very well knew the answer, he just didn’t want it to be true.  
“He went back to Sindria, brother En. I tried to convince him to not leave so we could fix things, but he wasn’t having any of it especially after the first attempt where I brought his name up and you completely ignored me.” Koumei answered.  
Yeap, it was unfortunately true. Still, he could fix things, right? He hoped so, he couldn’t stand the thought of his little birdie being away from him let alone letting him feel as if he hated him when he really didn’t. The first imperial prince planned to go to Sindria, but first he needed to give the knight prince space even if he wanted to go to him desperately.

More days passed and Spartos was at Sindria’s docks, doing his usual duty as a ship guard, however, he was quite tired and while Pisti managed to get him out of his depressed state that didn’t mean he was over Kouen. No, he still loved the first imperial prince and he hated himself for it as he wanted to get over him.  
Soon a ship pulled into the docks, he was expecting it to be a usual merchant ship, but instead it was a ship decorated in red and gold, the colors of the Kou Empire. He furrowed his eyes and frowned while silently praying that the person getting off the ship wasn’t who he thought it was, but to his dismay it was, Ren Kouen, first imperial prince of the Kou Empire. With him was his second brother, Ren Koumei, likely there to stop his brother from doing anything too drastic.

Dark orbs trailed to the wooden boards beneath his feet. Maybe if he didn’t acknowledge him then he’ll be on his way, unfortunately that wasn’t the case as he felt a familiar pair of eyes boring into him.  
“Spartos, look at me.” Kouen urged softly since his brother was next to him and would scold him if he demanded him to look at him.  
“It’s Sir Spartos to you, Lord Kouen.” Spartos replied coldly. He wished to just leave right then and there but he had his duties to uphold.

Koumei sighed, looks like he would have to help since the knight was surprisingly stubborn. “Spartos, I know you don’t want to hear it, but..Kouen truly didn’t cheat on you. Janus cast some sort of love spell or enchantment on him as he didn’t remember anything other than you bringing her to meet him.” He explained.  
Spartos looked up at the duo finally. “You expect me to buy into that!? It’s no excuse for what he’d done with her along with what he said!” He snapped, only to get a good hard smack across the face from the second prince. He rubbed his cheek and glared at him.

“Answer me this; did Lady Janus do anything weird when she arrived?” The second prince asked. He could feel his brother glaring at him for smacking the redhead’s face, but it was needed.  
The knight paused for a minute before thinking it through and slowly nodding. “She did wink at me. It made..super nervous, but she did the same thing to Kouen and that’s when he..” He trailed off, now realizing he was quite the dumbass. He had a bad feeling about Janus and even a red flag was put up but he chose to ignore it as he thought he was overreacting or just simply jealous, but that wasn’t the case at all but rather his gut instinct telling him that she was bad. He covered his face and in Torrian he said,”I’m a dumbass.”, over and over again.

Kouen frowned since he understood what he was saying and with hesitation he brought him into a hug. “You aren’t a dumbass, Spartos. Besides I’m one as well for even falling under her erm..spell or enchantment like that in the first place.” He took his hand in his, red eyes gazing into dark ones affectionately. “I know it’ll take time for you to forgive me, but for now we can take it easy. Take small steps if you will.” He added.  
Spartos couldn’t help but tear up and bury his head into the first imperial prince’s chest. He slowly nodded. “Yes, let’s..do that please and..I’m sorry for not knowing what was happening sooner. I’ll..never ignore my gut instinct again.”  
“I’m sorry as well for letting the horrible woman do that to me to begin with. If she comes back..” A sudden dark aura came around the slightly taller male “I’ll kill her. There is no way in hell she is actually royalty..” He finished.

Koumei facepalmed upon hearing this, but at the same time he mentally sighed of relief that things were semi back to normal.


	6. Chosen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kouen chooses Spartos as the representative for Sindria's alliance to Kou. The next night is a celebration but Spartos ends up drunk leaving Kouen to deal with him.

“Brother En, who do you plan on choosing to represent our alliance with Sindria?” Kouen heard Koumei’s question echo in his head. Currently he was on Kou’s royal ship on his way to choose one of the eight generals to be a representative of Sindria’s alliance to Kou. He thought long and hard about it, but in the end decided on Spartos.   
Why him? While each general had their own unique skills and personalities he found the knight’s more useful as one, he could teach his spear techniques and whatever he knew about archery granted he claimed he wasn’t an expert at it. However, another reason is he surprisingly couldn’t stand being away from him and it was apparent when he asked each general how he was doing albeit he tried to do it subtly so they wouldn’t be suspicious though the only ones he couldn’t fool were Pisti and Ja’far.

Once the ship arrived at the docks he got off and didn’t catch sight of Spartos thus leading him to conclude that it must’ve been his day off. Good, that would make things easier then so he headed to the palace and Pisti was waiting there to escort him since he told Sinbad that he would be coming in advance.   
“Who are you planning to choose?” She gave him a smug smile as if to say he didn’t actually have to answer as she believed she already knew who he planned to choose.  
He furrowed his eyes. “You should know. Speaking of which, where is his room? I wish to show Sinbad who I chose just to see his reaction.” He asked.

She nodded and led him to his room before knocking on the door. “Spartos, there is someone special here to see you! May we come in?” She asked.  
Spartos, who had been reading his scriptures, looked up and hummed. “Pisti, Sharrkan and Yamuraiha don’t count as special people since they’re my friends too. We’ve been over this, but come in anyway.”  
The small woman giggled in response as she opened the door and came into the room with Kouen following in suit. “Not to burst your bubble, little birdie, but I’m not either of them.”

The knight gave a stunned look, rubbed his eyes and blinked a few times to make sure he wasn’t imagining things. Once he did he stood up, bowed apologetically and uttered an apology. He just couldn’t believe that he was in Sindria in his room as he didn’t think he would ever want to visit due to the tension between him and Sinbad.  
“What brings you to Sindria? I didn’t think you’d ever want to be here.” Without answering the first imperial prince just tossed him up before catching him underneath his arm in a carrying position, which confused him even further

“You’ll see why I’m carrying you like this in a bit.” Kouen then headed out of his room towards the throne room as he knew where that was so he didn’t need to be escorted by Pisti. Once he arrived there he saw Sinbad and Ja’far, who was once again scolding him for not doing the paperwork and leaving him to do it. However, they stopped once they heard him come in and looked to see Spartos underneath his arm, who still hadn't caught onto what was happening.  
“I hope you two are done fighting like an old married couple because I’ve come to announce or rather show you my choice for the representative of our alliance.” He explained.

“Spartos!?” They both asked, stunned. The purple haired king then quickly shook his head. “Now hold on a minute, Lord Kouen. He is my general and the best ship guard we have. Besides, what does he have to say about it? What if he doesn’t want to go?” He asked, furrowing his eyes.  
Kouen paused. He didn’t want to take the knight back to the Kou Empire against his will even though he probably just took him out of his bedroom against his will. Red eyes gazed into dark orbs, which were now stunned at the news. “Lit-, Sir Spartos, what do you say? Will you become the representative of our alliance or do you choose to stay?” He asked.

“This is just..so sudden, Lord Kouen, but yes, I’ll..become a representative of the alliance.” Spartos answered. He then silently asked if he could be put down, which the first prince accepted to do. “When are you planning to leave?” He asked while straightening his robes.  
“Mmn. Well no doubt Sinbad will probably throw a celebration for our new alliance and you being chosen so I’d see three days. Isn’t that right, Sinbad?” He cast a dangerous look at the Sindrian king, who wasn’t phased but only nodded slowly while glaring back at him.  
The two generals watched them have a glare down before the knight gently tugged at the prince’s robes, obviously suggesting that they should go back to his room, which he agreed to do and the two went back to said room.

“My ember, I must ask you to refrain from giving Sinbad dirty looks. Yes, I know he can be quite..eccentric, but still you shouldn’t act in such a manner. It’s not very..prince like if you will.” The shorter of the two scolded lightly.  
The taller male sighed. “I know, little birdie.” He gave him an affectionate pat on the head. “He just seemed way too bothered by the fact that I chose you.” He added before hesitantly bringing him into his embrace. “The thought of being away from you just bothers me. You know I’ve been subtly asking the generals how you were doing although I don’t think I fooled your best friend or Sinbad’s little snake.” He explained.  
The redhead flicked his nose gently. “Don’t be so mean. You’ll just have to endure this for a few days at most.”

Kouen stared blankly for a few moments before shaking his head. “Care to escort me to the guest bedrooms?” Really he knew where they already were as he and Pisti had passed them earlier, but he wanted any excuse to be around Spartos.  
“Mhm. Do follow me.” He got out of his grip and led the first imperial prince to one of the many guest rooms before turning to face him. “If you do need something do let me know and I’ll kindly ask the servants to give it to you.”  
“What if I request cuddles or a kiss, little birdie?” The first imperial prince tried to give him a smug smile, but it ended up looking more scary and intimidating though thankfully the knight caught on easily.

“Then I’ll be around to give those myself.” Dark orbs rolled “Anyway, have a good rest of your evening, my ember.” He walked away and headed back to his room. He sighed, the festival would be tomorrow night and he knew he would be asked to drink with Sharrkan, Yamuraiha and Pisti. Usually he didn’t and ended up taking them back to their rooms with Masrur’s help. Tomorrow night however he just thought about staying in his room as he would be the center of attention and he wasn’t one for that, but alas it would be rude for him not to come. A sigh escaped his lips, he could only hope Kouen was there to make him feel just a tiny bit comfortable so with that in mind he went to bed.

The next night came around, Sinbad had announced the news to all of Sindria; Kou was now their ally and Spartos would be representing their alliance. Half were understandably questioning his decisions while the other half just accepted the news.  
The redhead himself was at the table with the other generals, however, he hadn’t been paying attention to what he was drinking as he listened to the others speak about different topics. It eventually became apparent that he got hammered when his face looked flustered and he was crying for seemingly no reason. He saw Kouen and stood up before going over to him “H..Hey there handsome. You come here..often?” He reached up, placing a hand on his cheek and hiccuping.

“Spartos, are you..drunk?” The first imperial prince was amazed but confused. Amazed because he recalled the knight telling him that he rarely drinked alcohol, but confused as he wasn’t sure what to do. The most logical thing that came to mind was giving him water and taking him to bed so he could rest, however, he wasn’t sure how cooperative a drunk Spartos would be so it was probably easier said than done.   
“Nevermind that.” He waved a servant over to come give him water, which they did and set the goblet down on the table before leaving. “Drink the water. It’ll sober you up a bit and help with the hangover for the next day.” He gently urged.

Spartos paused upon hearing what he had to say before laughing softly. “Silly man, I’m not..drunk. You are.” He booped his nose “However, I’ll drink the water if that's what you want.” He picked up the goblet and took sips of the water. This had indeed calmed him down a bit as he now went to sit back down to lie his head on the table, sobbing yet again.  
Pinching the bridge of his nose, Kouen sighed before going over to the knight prince and swooping him into his arms bridal style before heading off to his room. Once he got there he set him down on the bed, tucking him up but before he could take his leave he heard him say,”W..Wait. Please stay with me. I don’t want..to be left alone for the night.”, and he gazed back at him. He clicked his tongue “Very well, little birdie.” He reluctantly got into bed with him only to be pulled down and cuddled with.

A soft sigh escaped his lips as he managed to adjust himself so Spartos was lying on his chest while he managed to wrap his arm around him. Slowly he began to drift off to fall asleep, knowing that his little birdie wouldn’t be able to get up and end up somewhere random seeing as he was trapped with his arm around him made him happy. Still, he couldn’t believe that he had asked him to stay with him all because he didn’t want to be alone, which he knew he had little to no problem sleeping by himself. He imagined it must’ve been whatever alcohol the knight slipped down his throat talking and he even concluded that he was emotional yet flirtatious when drunk. An amused but quiet chuckle erupted from him when he realized that his best friend must’ve seen him this way at least once and didn’t let him live it down. With this in mind he let it drift into slumber.

The next day rolled around and Spartos awoke to a small headache, he groaned until seeing water and medicine on his nightdesk so he sat up slowly to take it before a quiet sigh of relief escaped his lips that is until he remembered what happened last night. He bit his lower lip, hoping that Kouen didn’t think any less of him because of his vile behavior from last night as he had flirted with him.  
“Good morning, little birdie.” He tensed, looking over at the door to see Kouen come in with some freshly made breakfast. “I had the chefs prepare you some breakfast. I must say your behavior from last night was quite..amusing.” He became flustered and hid his face behind the covers.

“P..Please don’t remind me and..I apologize if I said anything..vile.” He apologized while slowly moving the covers as the first imperial prince set the breakfast down. He nodded in thanks before he began to eat the prepared meal.  
“You didn’t say anything too vile, you just called me handsome.” The taller of the two reassured while stroking his hair, he’d usually pat his head but considering he must’ve had a small hangover that was probably not the best idea. Still, he loved the feeling of his hair, silky yet soft. “Also, you asked me to stay with you last night as you didn’t want to be alone so I did. However, I woke up earlier to get you some medicine and you wouldn’t feel uncomfortable upon waking up and seeing me sleeping next to you.” He explained.  
The shorter of the two slowly nodded as he continued to eat. He wouldn’t admit it outloud but he loved it when he stroked his hair, it was surprisingly gentle.

Kouen stopped stroking his hair and stood up. “We depart at sunset so I hope your hangover is gone by then.” He hesitated for a bit before planting a kiss on top of Spartos’s head before getting up, only for his hand to be grabbed.  
“Stay with me until then. If anyone asks, just say you’re helping me deal with my hangover.” The knight replied, not wanting him to go so soon as they only spent a whole day together yesterday.  
“Ask and you shall receive.” The first imperial prince sat down, taking his hand in return. He noted how bigger his hand was compared to the knight’s, it bothered him quite a bit but he knew the other must’ve felt the opposite about it as it must’ve been warm and comforting to him.  
You know what? He was perfectly okay with that if that’s how his little birdie saw them.


End file.
